'Sex Criminals' comic book series a wet dream come true for creators 0

Or at least, that's what its creators Matt Fraction (Iron Man, Hawkeye) and Chip Zdarsky have to say about their new critically acclaimed comic series.

"I think Matt and I both expected this to last a handful of issues, which we'd cherish forever, alone, in darkened rooms," Zdarsky, the artist behind the comic, tells QMI Agency.

Sex Criminals, a raunchy comic with a uniquely romantic core, focuses on the relationship between Suzie, a librarian, and Jon, an actor, who discover they have the power to freeze time during sex.

Using their newfound powers, Jon and Suzie set out to rob a bank in a desperate attempt to save Suzie's financially failing library.

"Matt and I have known each other for years from online shenanigans," Zdarsky says, emphasizing that at first their relationship was built on a mutual love of immature humour and potty mouth vocabulary.

"I had always wanted to work with him, and unbeknownst to me, he wanted the same. It was as simple as a back-and-forth exchange one day where we started fleshing out a dumb sex comedy, which Matt elevated without my permission into a really charming tale of sexuality."

Fraction and Zdarsky began to build up their characters' backgrounds; etching out the details of the series, and storyboarding the script that indie powerhouse Image Comics would eventually buy the rights to.

Although the comic had Fraction's name behind it, one of the biggest writers associated with Marvel's revived success in the past decade, Zdarsky was sure it would become a cult title instead of one of the most talked-about titles of 2013.

"The reaction to Sex Criminals is beyond both of our wildest, wet dreams," Zdarsky says.

Alongside the critical praise from countless outlets, blogs, and of course, tweets, Sex Criminals has also surmised complaints from some readers who have described the context of the story, and the vulgarity oftentimes used, as misogynistic.

Others have debated that the blatant nature of the sensationalized sexual acts is completely satirical.

Zdarsky said when he hears stories about how people dislike the comic for reasons, "which run counter to how I feel I am as a person," it hurts.

"We're trying our best to create an honest story with characters that feel like they could exist"¦all I can say is we're trying our best and we constantly strive to be better."

For the most part, though, Zdarsky said he's received an overwhelmingly amount of vocal support for the series, especially from women.

With the crazy amount of unforeseen support, he admitted it'd be harder to eventually stop producing.

"Before we started doing this, I could definitely imagine an end, but Matt and I quickly fell in love with the characters and the idea of stopping at some point is hard."

Whether Sex Criminals has a long run or not, Zdarsky said he's caught the comic bug and there's no turning back now.

Issue #5 of Sex Criminals hits stands March 19. A collected trade paperback will be released April 16.